The last stage of the 50th edition of the Boucles de la Mayenne ultimately resulted in a status quo in the general classification. Thibaud Gruel tried to gain a few seconds to get the yellow jersey back, but he was unable to find an opening either at the start or the end of the race on Sunday. The Frenchman therefore had to settle for third place overall, while Paul Penhoët snatched fifth place in Laval.
A bunch sprint is usually the outcome in Laval, in the closing act of the Boucles de la Mayenne. However, the profile at the start on Sunday could suit some teams, including the Groupama-FDJ cycling team. “The start of the race was favourable to us, and we were in a very good position,” said William Green. “The fight for the breakaway was intense because many teams still had riders high up in the general classification and wanted to take the risk of putting them in front. The fight continued for a long time, especially since there was a steep climb after twenty-five kilometres. With the small roads and downhills, it was very fast and very difficult, then the first bonus sprint was at kilometre 57. We really wanted to target it with Thibaud to take back the yellow. We went all in for this bonus with Clément and Thibaud. As we approached the sprint, Clément was in a front position, but Thibaud made a wrong decision. He changed the wheel he was following, ended up being blocked and couldn’t fight for the bonus seconds. This is the main regret for the day because this sprint was almost the finish line for Thibaud. He lacked a bit of experience, but he’s still a young rider.”
“We’re really proud of the team,” William Green
Race leader Aaron Gate increased his lead by one second, pushing the Frenchman to three seconds in the overall. Right after, the day’s breakaway formed with four riders, with less than 100 kilometres to go. “There weren’t any dangerous riders for the GC,” William explained. “Intermarché-Wanty was interested in the sprint for Girmay, but it was a difficult chase, on very hard roads to bring back time. We also rode with Tom in the final, and he gave 120%. Unfortunately, some teams were represented at the front and obviously didn’t pull. We took our responsibilities, as did other teams, it was a very challenging day to bring back this breakaway”. So much so that the breakaway still had a lead of over a minute entering the local circuit in Laval, which was five-kilometre long and had to be covered four times. At the end of the first lap, Marius Mayrhofer got rid of his breakaway companions and quickly demonstrated his ability to resist the chase from the peloton.
With one lap remaining, his lead was still fifty seconds, which meant the peloton was set to fight for second place. “When we realized we were going to sprint for second and not for the win, we focused on Thibaud,” William said. “Unfortunately, with one kilometre to go, he found himself a bit far back. That said, when you’ve raced aggressively the day before and have fought for bonus seconds earlier in the race, it’s not easy to fight against the sprinters who were focused on this stage only. In the end, Paul did the sprint. Honestly, we couldn’t have done a better job in the final. It was unfortunate Thibaud wasn’t there, but what Clément did was absolutely perfect. Paul entered the final stretch in a very good position and had an open way to sprint.” The young man ultimately took fourth place in the peloton, making him fifth on the stage. No major changes occurred in the overall standings, with Thibaud Gruel securing third place.
“We’re really satisfied with the week,” concluded William. “We’re not often in a position to defend a yellow jersey, so it was a good experience. I think we did a good job, even if there’s still room for improvement. At 21, Thibaud defended a yellow jersey, finished third overall, best young rider, and with a stage win. We’re really proud of the team. Thibaud was sixth overall in Dunkirk, he knew he was the leader here and he stepped up. We were fourth last year in the Boucles de la Mayenne, we finished third this year. Hopefully we won’t wait two years to reach the top step.”
